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Trend Data

According to our December 2009 survey, 71% of American adult internet users use the internet on an average day. Here are some of the things they do on a typical day.

  • If you would like to get information on how use of the internet has changed over time you can download a very large Usage Over Time spreadsheet, which has data stretching back to our early surveys in 2000 for the online activities we measure. The spreadsheet also contains extensive details about user demographics.
  • This data is only for adult Internet users. For information about how teens (ages 12-17) use the Internet, please see our Teens topic page.
  • To see how different generations use the internet, please see this chart of Generational differences in online activities from our Generations 2009 report.

 

Activity

% of
internet
users

Last Asked

Use the internet

71%

Dec-09

Send or read e-mail

58

Sept-09

Use a search engine to find information

50

Apr-09

Get news

38

Apr-09

Go online just for fun or to pass the time

38

Apr-09

Check the weather

33

Apr-09

Look for info on a hobby or interest

29

Feb-Mar-07

Use an online social networking site like MySpace, Facebook or LinkedIn.com*

27

Sept-09

Look online for news or information about politics or the upcoming campaigns*

25

Apr-09

Do any banking online

24

Apr-09

Do any type of research for your job

23

Feb-Mar-07

Look for information online about a service or product you are thinking of buying

20

Sep-07

Watch a video on a video-sharing site like YouTube or Google Video

19

Apr-09

Research for school or training

16

Jan-05

Get sports scores and info online*

15

Aug-06

Look for information on Wikipedia

12

Dec-08

Get financial info online, such as stock quotes or mortgage interest rates

12

Apr-09

Send instant messages

11

Nov-08

Visit a local, state or federal government website*

10

Nov-08

Read someone else’s online journal or blog*

10

Dec-08

Look for health/medical info

10

May-08

Search for a map or driving directions

10

Dec-06

Use online classified ads or sites like Craig’s list

9

Apr-09

Look online for info about a job*

9

Apr-09

Play online games*

9

Aug-06

Use Twitter or other status-update service

9

Sept-09

Buy a product

8

Apr-09

Search for info about someone you know or might meet

8

Aug-08

Post comments to an online news group, website, blog or photo site

8

Sept-09

Download music files to your computer

7

Dec-07

Categorize or tag online content like a photo, news story or blog post

7

Dec-06

Pay bills online

7

Jan-05

Look up phone number or address

7

Feb-04

Look for "how-to," "do-it-yourself" or repair information

7

Aug-08

Pay to access or download digital content online*

6

Dec-07

Listen to music online at a website

6

May-Jun-04

Download video files to your computer

5

Dec-07

Look for info about a place to live*

5

Aug-06

Upload photos to a website so you can share them with others online

5

Aug-06

Chat in a chat room or in an online discussion

5

Sep-05

Share something online that you created yourself

4

Sept-09

Look for religious/spiritual info

4

Apr-09

Take a virtual tour of a location online

4

Aug-06

Get info online about a college, university or other school you or a family member might attend

4

Jan-05

Listen to a live or recorded radio broadcast online, such as a newscast, sporting event, or radio show

4

May-Jun-04

Create or work on web pages or blogs for others, including friends, groups you belong to, or for work

4

Sept-09

Rate a product, service or person using an online rating system

3

Apr-09

Buy or make a reservation for travel

3

Apr-09

Download a podcast so you can listen to it or view it later*

3

May-08

Download or share files using peer-to-peer file-sharing networks, such as BitTorrent or LimeWire

3

May-08

Post a comment or review online about a product you bought or a service you received

3

Sep-07

Participate in an online auction

3

Apr-09

Create or work on your own webpage

3

Sept-09

Create or work on your own online journal or blog*

2

Sept-09

Take material you find online—like songs, text or images—and remix it into your own artistic creation

2

Sept-09

View live images online of a remote location or person, using a webcam

2

Dec-06

Take a class online just for personal enjoyment or enrichment*

2

Jan-05

Make a phone call online*

2

Feb-Mar-07

Use an online dating website*

2

Sept-09

Visit virtual worlds such as Second Life

1

Sept-09

Participate in an online discussion, a listserv, or other online group forum that helps people with personal issues or health problems*

1

Dec-08

Buy or sell stocks, bonds, or mutual funds

1

Apr-09

Create an avatar or online representation of yourself

1

Feb-Mar-07

Sell something online

1

Aug-06

Research your family’s history or genealogy online*

1

Sept-09

Take a class online for credit toward a degree of some kind*

1

Dec-05

Visit an adult website

1

May-Jun-04

Download or share adult content online

1

May-Jun-04

Make a donation to a charity online

<1%

Apr-09

While this list contains many of the activities the Pew Internet Project has asked about, it is not a comprehensive list. For a complete list of our activity tracking since 2000 please refer to the Usage Over Time spreadsheet.

* Item wording has changed slightly over time for the items marked with a single asterisk. Please see questionnaires for question wording.

Last updated: December 4, 2009

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DATA POINT

76%

the percentage of adult cell phone users who take pictures with their cell phone, up from 66% in 2009.

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The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project is one of seven projects that make up the Pew Research Center. The Center is supported by The Pew Charitable Trust.